Police have arrested and charged a 48-year-old man accused of fatally shooting someone after an argument last month at Fells Point’s Blarney Stone Pub.
Baltimore police said Phillip West, of Rosemont in Southwest Baltimore, turned himself in to Warrant Apprehension detectives around 2 p.m. Monday. He’s since been taken to Central Booking and charged with first- and second-degree murder, use of a firearm in a violent crime and several gun charges. He was awaiting an appearance before a court commissioner Tuesday morning.
West is accused of killing Rodney Beamon, 32, of Cincinnati, just after midnight on Dec. 21. Beamon was shot multiple times in the chest and transported to Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he died.
Homicide detectives interviewed patrons and employees inside the bar and reviewed video footage from nearby, police said. The same day as the murder, they shared a photo of West’s car to ask the public for help locating him, noting he was “considered armed and dangerous.”
Police had a warrant out for West’s arrest for the last three weeks, and had been spotted serving a warrant at a restaurant in Canton, with assistance from U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents, the day of the shooting.
At a press conference the following afternoon, Acting Commissioner Gary Tuggle said the two men had been arguing inside the Irish bar, and went outside and then back in, where Beamon was shot. Tuggle had said police “strongly believe” they knew each other and assured it was not an act of random violence.
The pre-Christmas killing was the city’s sixth in seven days, and happened on a weekend when crowds were out in Fells Point ahead of the holidays.
Court records do not list an attorney for West. He’s due to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on Feb. 14.
